ASICs for the SCRYPT algorithm are much harder to make, and when they come out, they will be slower than BTC's SHA algorithm.
Remember, SHA256 was designed for speed... and easily made into a hardware implementation. SCRYPT however, was designed to be slow and explicitly designed to be difficult to implement on ASICs (its possible of course, just harder).
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As for the 1 minute box, if you want security, just wait for 10 confirmations in DOGE. If you want speed, you can wait for 1 confirmation. Faster confirmations are strictly more flexible than slower confirmations.
The speed of an SCRYPT ASIC versus a SHA ASIC isn't really relevant. What's relevant is the speed increase that ASICs enjoy over CPU/GPU mining. Surely the relatively few people able to produce/afford ASICs for Dogecoin would be able to comprise a large portion of the Dogecoin network, just like Bitcoin ASIC miners comprise a large portion of the Bitcoin network.
Basically, BTC ASICs are 700x more efficient than GPUs. LTC (and other SCrypt ASICs) are expected to only be ~20x more efficient.
By making ASICs less efficient, it keeps more of the control of network in the hands of the individuals. SCrypt is the better hashing algorithm for ANY self-proclaimed libertarian, who wishes to remove power from the ASICs that have taken over the BTC network.
False, but I'll give it to you because I don't feel like arguing.
So we've got a system that allows for greater ease by having the potential for a 1-minute confirmation, vs a system that FORCES you to always wait 10-minutes.
The system with 1-minute confirmations can always wait for multiple confirmations to increase security. But the system with 10-minute confirmations is forced. Instead, you have tons of sites that wait for 0-confirmations!!
One system is more flexible than the other and solves a pressing need in the core system. Whether you like it or not, DOGE has learned from BTC's mistakes and is improving upon the status quo.
I don't think DOGE is perfect quite yet though, maybe a few more "fun" currencies will come and go before we stick with a winner. But it is clear to me that BTC has too many core issues at hand for it to be the cryptocoin of the future.
Remember, SHA256 was designed for speed... and easily made into a hardware implementation. SCRYPT however, was designed to be slow and explicitly designed to be difficult to implement on ASICs (its possible of course, just harder).
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As for the 1 minute box, if you want security, just wait for 10 confirmations in DOGE. If you want speed, you can wait for 1 confirmation. Faster confirmations are strictly more flexible than slower confirmations.